LAUREL — Saturday marked the fourth day of play in the Class A state Legion tournament at Thompson Park, and four teams were left standing going into the day.
Three of those four walked away with the chance to take home a state title Sunday.
Laurel defeated the Billings Blue Jays in a loser-out contest, while Glacier stayed alive by beating Belgrade in a must-win. Because this was Belgrade's first lost of the tournament, they received a bye to play for the state crown against the winner of the Laurel-vs.-Glacier matchup, which takes place at noon on Sunday.
Here are the game recaps from the fourth day of the tournament:
Laurel 6, Billings Blue Jays 2
The first game of the day, it was an Eastern district showdown with the No. 1 seed, the Laurel Dodgers, taking on the 2 seed, the Billings Blue Jays.
The Blue Jays had some key opportunities to score in the first two innings, but could not cash in, and Laurel's bats got hot in the third. The Dodgers would score two runs to take the first lead of the game.
The would extend that lead to 6-0 in the fourth. Maverick Hoppman, Louis Nagy, Parker Knaub and Evan Caton all crossed home for their team to give them the four more runs.
With still a lot of baseball left to be played, Billings would score two more runs. They came in the fourth and the sixth innings.
Laurel held on and won 6-2. They play Glacier on Sunday at noon in a must-win to advance to the championship game against Belgrade 45 minutes after the first game ends. Billings was eliminated from the tournament.
Glacier 10, Belgrade 2
The 1 seed out of the West, the Glacier Twins, handed the 1 seed out of the South, the Belgrade Bandits, their first loss of the tournament.
Glacier was in a must-win position, as they suffered a loss from Billings earlier in the week. The Twins scored their first run in the bottom of the first, but the Bandits responded right away in the top of the third.
After the second inning, it would be all Glacier from there. They scored six runs in the third and the fourth and added three more in the sixth.
Belgrade added one more run in the top of the seventh, but Glacier held on to win 10-2, clinching in the top of the seventh. Twins starter Sam Hall was solid, allowing two earned runs on just three hits with a strikeout and two walks in seven innings.
Michael Glass had an impressive four runs for Glacier. Kellen Kroger and Tristan Butts each had two runs, and Kroger had three RBIs
Glacier will now play Laurel on Sunday at noon in a must-win to advance to the championship game against Belgrade 45 minutes after the first game ends.
